Lawrence Summers, who served as Treasury secretary under Bill Clinton, argued that Mr. Trump's public statement that he "wants to see [interest rates] come down significantly" was a public intervention by the government that "could easily backfire and the Fed would not follow its advice." Mr. Summers added: Unless the financial marekt boom collapses, it will be difficult for the Fed to cut interest rates as much as expected. The Fed itself is eager to play down tensions with the White House. Mr. Powell is expected to dodge questions about politics and avoid mentioning Mr. Trump's name in a post-meeting press conference. (Kim 10)